While rummaging through my divination chest, my eyes rest upon a familiar red drawstring pouch. The varied shades of red are reminiscent of the red maple tree as its colors sprout forth at the first signs of autumn. I open the pouch and shake out the large cards with the simple brown backs. My long time friend, the DruidCraft emerges. Its white borders are left intact only due to my fear of forever changing such a perfect deck. Oh how I have missed you. There were others before you, but their messages I could not hear. You were the first deck that spoke to me in a language I could understand. You provided the foundation from which communication with all other decks was made possible. What messages have you for me today?

I pull the deep purple spread cloth out of the bag and lay it on top of the divination chest. I instinctively begin shuffling as questions form in my mind. What do you see as the purpose of our separation? As I shuffle the large, untrimmed cards side to side one card is resisting my efforts to slide it back into the deck. I turn it over and find that it is the Ten of Wands, reversed. Ah, yes. It would appear that I was in need of transformation. I was to turn the burden of learning the Tarot into something that was not a burden at all. How fitting. A feeling of warmth comes over me and I cannot help smiling as my old friend speaks to me so clearly once again. I can effortlessly decipher its messages. I begin shuffling once again. Was my purpose fulfilled, I wonder. Two cards drop to the floor. I pick them up and place them next to each other. The two of Wands I position to the right of the first card. Yes, I have learned to walk through the doorway between one deck and another. I have found the value of reading with multiple decks. I definitely had the urge to explore, to grow and to attempt to gain additional experience, though I had everything I needed right here with you. The third card, which I placed to the right of the Two of Wands, is the Six of Cups. Oh, how well you know me, my dear, DruidCraft. I longed to hear your familiar voice as I shuffled and experimented with other decks. The feelings of nostalgia you always bring remind me that you are my one true friend among the wealth of other decks in my collection. You are always there to tell me what I need to hear, rather than what I want to hear.

In the past, I cast you aside as I continued my quest for hidden knowledge, but alas, there is no knowledge in other decks that I could not have gained from working with you and you alone. The tarot journey is a long and fulfilling one, and my journey among others has not been in vain. I have found the comfort of an old friend in you. I may not have recognized your value had I not ventured out into the vast world of Tarot. Your earthy colors and honorable characters bring me a feeling of truth and justice that resonates deeply within my soul. With a steaming cup of strawberry tea sweetened with a bit of honey and my beloved DruidCraft, I am enveloped in the comfort of the presence of a treasured friend. A friend who is dependable, trustworthy, and above all else, accepting of my need to grow and develop.

Finally! I have been searching for the right genre in which to classify my most recent writing.

I do love to write about things happening in this day and age while adding a bit of the paranormal to the mix. The problem I was having is that classifying it as paranormal didn’t seem to fit due to the fact that the paranormal genre has a tendency to imply that things going on are shocking and frightful, even to the character experiencing it. People who would read my stories often would say that my characters needed to be little more reactive when a spirit appeared or act a bit more frightened when they stepped into the other realm via a looking glass. In my opinion, at least for someone in the story, these experiences should be totally "normal".

I also had a problem placing my stories into the fantasy or sci-fi genre because, well, that type of writing takes a lot more creativity than I have. Creating alternate universes, original species with their own civilizations and their own languages, new modes of transportation that travel in the blink of an eye is not something that comes naturally to me. So I was at a loss.

So, half of writing is research about writing. Market research, genre classifications, etc., etc. As I’m going on my merry way I see a post on a forum about a person getting published and I click the link, I mean we have to support our fellow writers, after all. Horror, it says. Normally I stay far, far away from horror as disurbing images really, really get to me. I mean, really. Anyway, I look for the story and it’s good and I manage to read it all the way through. That’s not so bad, the horror part was virtually non-existant. The story itself I really liked. Something clicked, hmm I think I can write that. Happy endings turned to the death of a main character or some other such twist of fate that wasn’t soo scary but a wee bit disturbing. So I read a few more stories from the same publication. Ok, now I know I can write this. Delving into the dark side isn’t so hard, after all… but is that really horror? So, I go again in search of more of the same, just to see, because surely some horror is really horrific. Yep, it doesn’t take long to find a place which publishes horror needing a disclaimer right on the front page warning just how disturbing the stories might really be… I hesitate…I consider it…I have a migraine anyway, might as well not irritate myself…today.

Categories

Disa Wylde is the pseudonym I use when my fiction is being published online in the paranormal, metaphysical, or magical realism genres. My short stories have been published online at Tarot Reflections and in print in Tarot World Magazine.
In addition, I am a
Nonsectarian Ordained Minister,
Usui Reiki Master,
Certified Life Coach,
Jewelry Designer, and
a member of the American Tarot Association.
I am working towards my PhD in Metaphysical Sciences and learning to read Lenormand cards.